It’s been a while since I looked at where our electricity company gets its power. The last one I can find is October 2009. I’d stacked up this year’s reports so here is far too much info on the New England GreenStart program’s power source. Looks like we are up to 13.2% power from solar and wind. Which means it has tripled since 2008: not bad. Bummer for me though: they just sent me a note saying the unit cost price for the “green” electricity is tripling (! . . . I think because they can) by about $20 a month. Hmm.

Not sure they can keep increasing the solar and wind power quite as fast—so bring on the the Cape Cod Wind Farm, and as many more as they can build asap.

Our office in Easthampton is 40 miles south of Vermont’s leaky old nuclear power plant, Vermont Yankee (seen here being gently buzzed by Greenpeace’s thermal airship) and here in Boston we’re 40 miles south another nuclear plant in New Hampshire. Eek! Build me a windfarm and coat my building in solar panels now!

Update: As far as I can see it’s pretty much always 75% “small hydro” (is that “greener” than “big hydro”? Is there less damage from dams?) and then a mix of mostly wind, then solar, and digester gas.

Update: Vermont Yankee is closing, yay!

Fall 2017

71% old hydro

6% new hydro

3% biomass

6% solar

14% wind

Summer 2017

74.9% hydro

3.4% landfill gas

5.4% biomass

4.2% solar

12% wind

Spring 2017

75% hydro

7% digester gas

5% solar

13% wind

Winter 2017 — hydro back to 75%

75% hydro

7% digester gas

6% solar

12% wind

Fall 2016 — first time hydro has dropped 1%

74% hydro

8% biomass

4% solar

14% wind

Summer 2016

75% hydro

8% biomass

2% solar

15% wind

Spring 2016

75% hydro

6% biomass

3% solar

16% wind

Winter 2016

75% hydro

5% biomass

4% solar

16% wind

Autumn 2015

75% “small hydro”

4% gas digester

5% solar

16% wind

Summer 2015

75% “small hydro”

1% digester gas

5% solar

19% wind

Spring 2015:

75% “small hydro”

2% digester gas

7% solar

16% wind

Autumn 2014:

75% “small hydro”

3% digester gas

6% solar

16% wind

Summer 2014 was nearly the same as the previous 2 quarters:

75% “small hydro”

3% digester gas

5% solar

17% wind

It is depressing to look at our supplier, National Grid’s “standard mix” of power. Lot of change to come here:

36% “natural” gas

28% nuclear

15% imported

6% oil

5% coal

5% municipal trash

3% wind

1% biomass

1% hydro

Spring 2014 was exactly the same as:
Winter 2014 (back to “disgester gas”—how is your digestion?)

75% “small hydro”

4% digester gas

6% solar

15% wind

Autumn 2013 (same as spring except with a new title for hydro. But, really, is hydro low impact? Relatively. Maybe.)

75% hydroelectric (now retitled small hydro. hmm)

3% biogas

6% solar

16% wind

Summer 2013 (same as spring except with a new title for hydro. But, really, is hydro low impact? Relatively, maybe.)